Sgt. Jeff Sabo, with the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, said that's the frightening reality of low-head dams. One such structure, Easton's Chain Dam, claimed the life of one of two kayakers caught in its hydraulics Wednesday afternoon on the Lehigh River.

Jeffrey Deemer, 26, of Forks Township, went over the dam in a kayak and drowned, his death ruled an accident, authorities said. He had been kayaking with Caleb Gallagher, 23, of Easton, in the city's Hugh Moore Park, authorities said.

Gallagher portaged around the dam and tried to reach Deemer by rope before going into the river in his own kayak at the downriver base of the dam. Gallagher's kayak overturned and he was trapped in the hydraulics of the dam until both he and Deemer were freed by the current.

Gallagher was transported to a St. Luke's University Health Network facility and was recovering, authorities said Thursday.

'Respect the safety zones'

Sabo said the Fish and Boat Commission will investigate the incident, as is done with every boating fatality in the state. Sabo said buoys mark the area before the exclusion zone, the area upstream and downstream of the dam, where it becomes increasingly difficult to get away from the pull of the dam's boil.

The hydraulic boil is the dangerous circular churning of water pouring over the edge of the low-head dam. Sabo said the power of that water is immense — he's seen it trap large trees floating downriver after a storm.

"You have to respect the safety zones," Sabo said. "That's done for a reason."

Sabo said that at the Chain Dam, boaters should paddle to the right shore before the exclusion zone to reach an easy access to shore near the park's Locktender's House. After walking around the dam, they can re-enter the water 100 feet downriver.

Passing those warning buoys is against state law, Sabo said. Citations can be handed out if authorities see a boater inside the exclusion zone.

"We're trying to stress the safety and stress the importance of honoring the buoys and getting out of there," Sabo said. "It's extremely difficult and next to impossible to escape that boil."

Boil's power deceptive

Underestimating the force of the water at a dam is a lethal gamble.

"You don't realize how powerful they are until you're actually in them," Sabo said of the boils. "And at that point panic can set in."

Sabo said getting one's feet on the ground to stand up or push out of the boil is the best shot at getting out, but in places like the Chain Dam the water can be too deep to get out easily. Easton fire Capt. Henry Hennings said the water in the Lehigh was about 10 feet deep Wednesday and about 59 degrees.

City fire Chief John Bast said rescue crews cannot go into the boil during a rescue operation because of the likelihood of a first responder drowning.

"That's part of the problem," Bast said of accidents on dams. "If you get in trouble in some of those areas you're on your own."

Practicing safe boating

Sabo said the recent rain had caused currents to pick up and water levels to rise — both of which can make boating more dangerous.

"Staying away from those dams is the No. 1 thing," Sabo said of practicing river safety.

Discussion last year on removing the dams as part of an effort to help fish migration has not made any headway, Mayor Sal Panto Jr. said Thursday. City officials want to keep the dams, he said, and proper markings are in place to keep boaters from getting too close.